Who’s in, who’s out and who’s in goal?

There are still some question marks regarding the Predators’ lineup for Monday night’s game against Toronto.

Jason Arnott practiced on Sunday and will return for the contest against the Maple Leafs. Predators coach Barry Trotz is also leaning toward using Jerred Smithson, who practiced Sunday for the first time since breaking his hand on Dec. 22. Smithson has been skating on his own for weeks, so conditioning shouldn’t as much of a factor as it might be with another injury.

Also going through his first practice Sunday since getting injured was Jordin Tootoo, who suffered a broken foot on Dec. 12. Trotz didn’t rule Tootoo out, but he’s more likely to take a few more practices before seeing game action.

A couple of regulars were missing from practice on Sunday. Joel Ward was out with a maintenance day, and is expected to be in the lineup against Toronto. J.P. Dumont missed practice due to illness, so the Preds will reevaluate his status Monday morning.

If the Preds choose to send a player back to Milwaukee, Trotz said the team will likely do that on Monday. With Smithson on the verge of returning, it would seem that Andreas Thuresson might be the most likely candidate to head back to the AHL.

And if you were wondering whether Dan Ellis’ shutout on Friday might earn him a second straight start in goal, the answer looks like no. Pekka Rinne is scheduled to start against the Leafs, as the Preds keep the rotation system going.